Agricultural News
DNA Testing Helps Make Culling Decisions Easier When Dealing with Drought
Wed, 08 May 2013 15:33:42 CDT
Reducing herd size has been one solution for cattlemen dealing with drought. That meant tough decisions, especially when all the cows seemed like keepers, but some producers are turning to commercial DNA to add more information to that culling process says Mark Gardiner of Gardiner Angus Ranch in Ashland, Kansas.
"Let's say I've got a hundred heifers and all I want is to keep 50 of them. We Gene Max those heifers and and we keep the top 50 percent or maybe the top 25 percent, but again, knowledge is power. And to have, for $17 a head, to be able to know what are your top heifers on the basis of marbling and performance and the composite score, that's powerful information. And that's information that will help our producers make strategic decisions that will help them make more money in the future."
As a seed stock producer, Gardiner says it's imperative to educate customers about that test because it's one tool they can use during drought as an opportunity to make herd improvements.
"My dad always said, 'Good genetics don't cost, they pay.' And I very much believe that. And, really, in all seriousness, now is the time to bear down more than ever before on the best genetics."
Marketed by Certified Angus Beef and Angus Gentics, Inc., the Gene Max test also offers a kind of paternity test or sire matching if the bull battery has been Zoetis HD 50K tested says Kent Anderson of Zoetis.
"We can keep heifers out of those bulls that are particularly strong in the maternal traits such as maternal calving ease, milk production, heifer pregnancy, as well as growth and carcass merit so that we can just make sure that the very best replacements possible out of our pool are going to rebuild our herd."
Gardiner said making DNA technology available to commercial cattlemen is a boon to the industry.
"This is one more tool that we can put in our toolbox, we can have information to make decisions with, and that's what the association does--arming us with those tools that help us make good decisions."
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